Phil Thompson believes Liverpool can still sneak into the top four on the Premier League by season's end.

The Reds were dumped from the FA Cup after losing 2-1 to Aston Villa in the semi-final on Sunday meaning they have no chance of winning any silverware this term.

However, former Anfield great Thompson is remaining positive about Brendan Rodgers' side's hopes of finishing off the league campaign strongly so they can achieve the targets set out in pre-season.

"Our biggest aim this season was to ensure we got Champions League football again," the former Liverpool defender told Sky Sports.

"It's still possible, so it's hard to say the season has been a failure until you get to the very last game and you see how you finish.

"City, for all the problems that they've had, you know they've got players who are capable, so it's difficult to see them losing their games.

"We definitely need to play better football between now and the end of the season, and that can give everyone a bit of a confidence boost ahead of next year at least.

"But, again, you can only judge it when you see where they finish, so you can't label it a failure just yet."